*day two*
let me update you on where i am and what exactly i'm doing. i am part of a 5-day training presented jointly by cirque du monde (a leg of cirque du soleil; based in montreal) and the national institute of circus arts here in melbourne, australia. this training is provided for circus trainers and social workers alike who are using circus as tool to draw the community together, to reach out to at-risk youth, and to spark that fire of imagination and creativity in young people. there are about 20 folks here from all over southeast asia (and beyond): 2 people from an NGO (non-government organization. read: charity) in singapore; 2 ladies working with displaced youth in mongolia; a french speaking scot who has made connections with a grassroots circus family in goa, india; an american who's lived in asia for 15 years and now works with an NGO in bangkok, thailand working with orphans; 4 people from broken hill, australia who are working with the aboriginal community; an oxfam staff who started the partnership aboriginal program in broken hill; an aussie lady who works with survivors of sexual abuse; a russian acrobat; and of course the 2 french canadians who are running the training, emmanuel and michel. oh, and me and my coworker from KELY.
so here i am, on a funky university campus, in the middle of funky st.kilda in melbourne, learning not just circus tricks, but understanding the phenomenonal effect that the circus has on people lingering on the fringe of society. it blows my mind sometimes when i think about it. i love being taken out of my comfort zone (now in hong kong) and being challenged in the way i perceive the world, people, coomunities, and how they work. i love being able to get a glimpse of the lives of people from places so far removed from where i've been (and sometimes i think i've seen a lot, but then i come to a place like this....) and having that wire fence of my mind stretched even further.
you know, for years after i graduated from university, all i wanted to do was travel. i worked my butt off for 2 years, most of the time juggling (oh such irony) at least 2 or 3 jobs with the hopes of saving enough money to travel the world. but in the process i forgot something. i forgot that my life is not, and can never really be, planned by ME. i forgot that there are plans and ways and thoughts that are higher than my own. and the whole time i was miserable without knowing it, becuase i was going against what the Holy Spirit was trying to reveal to me. i never got anywhere. for 2 years, i stayed in vancouver.
but as soon as i let go, i mean REALLY let go, of my own plans, and my own pride, the Lord took me through the wringer and made me more whole in the process. and in the process, in the last 2.5 years since i've really allowed God to unveil HIS plans in my life, He's brought me to hong kong, the philippines, thailand, new zealand, india, hawaii, china, and now australia. isn't He amazing?
the canopy of God's plans is so wide and high and deep and long - i don't ever want to let myself get into that cramped little box of what I think is real or possible. when i release my grip on what i WANT, and really dig deep and see what i NEED, i find the sweetness of my JESUS who hung on the cross, and the blood that poured from his side is what releases me from my own chains. i love him, and i give my whole life to him.
who is the lover of your soul?
let me update you on where i am and what exactly i'm doing. i am part of a 5-day training presented jointly by cirque du monde (a leg of cirque du soleil; based in montreal) and the national institute of circus arts here in melbourne, australia. this training is provided for circus trainers and social workers alike who are using circus as tool to draw the community together, to reach out to at-risk youth, and to spark that fire of imagination and creativity in young people. there are about 20 folks here from all over southeast asia (and beyond): 2 people from an NGO (non-government organization. read: charity) in singapore; 2 ladies working with displaced youth in mongolia; a french speaking scot who has made connections with a grassroots circus family in goa, india; an american who's lived in asia for 15 years and now works with an NGO in bangkok, thailand working with orphans; 4 people from broken hill, australia who are working with the aboriginal community; an oxfam staff who started the partnership aboriginal program in broken hill; an aussie lady who works with survivors of sexual abuse; a russian acrobat; and of course the 2 french canadians who are running the training, emmanuel and michel. oh, and me and my coworker from KELY.
so here i am, on a funky university campus, in the middle of funky st.kilda in melbourne, learning not just circus tricks, but understanding the phenomenonal effect that the circus has on people lingering on the fringe of society. it blows my mind sometimes when i think about it. i love being taken out of my comfort zone (now in hong kong) and being challenged in the way i perceive the world, people, coomunities, and how they work. i love being able to get a glimpse of the lives of people from places so far removed from where i've been (and sometimes i think i've seen a lot, but then i come to a place like this....) and having that wire fence of my mind stretched even further.
you know, for years after i graduated from university, all i wanted to do was travel. i worked my butt off for 2 years, most of the time juggling (oh such irony) at least 2 or 3 jobs with the hopes of saving enough money to travel the world. but in the process i forgot something. i forgot that my life is not, and can never really be, planned by ME. i forgot that there are plans and ways and thoughts that are higher than my own. and the whole time i was miserable without knowing it, becuase i was going against what the Holy Spirit was trying to reveal to me. i never got anywhere. for 2 years, i stayed in vancouver.
but as soon as i let go, i mean REALLY let go, of my own plans, and my own pride, the Lord took me through the wringer and made me more whole in the process. and in the process, in the last 2.5 years since i've really allowed God to unveil HIS plans in my life, He's brought me to hong kong, the philippines, thailand, new zealand, india, hawaii, china, and now australia. isn't He amazing?
the canopy of God's plans is so wide and high and deep and long - i don't ever want to let myself get into that cramped little box of what I think is real or possible. when i release my grip on what i WANT, and really dig deep and see what i NEED, i find the sweetness of my JESUS who hung on the cross, and the blood that poured from his side is what releases me from my own chains. i love him, and i give my whole life to him.
who is the lover of your soul?
posted by jana* at 11:03 AM
